Means for closing and opening skips



F. UHLIG.

MEANS FOR CLOSING AND OPENING SKIPS APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 14. I920.

1,41 5,0 6, Pdtented May 9, 1922.

3 SHEETS-SHEET I.

. F. UHLlG.

- MEANS FOR CLOSING AND OPENING SKIPS APPLICATION FILED SEPT. I4. I920.

Patented May 9,1922. A

3 SHEETS-SHEET Z- v F. UHLIG. I MEANS FOR CLOSING AND OPENING SKIPS APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 14, I920. Patenwd May 9, 1922.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3- FRANZ UHLIG, OF

BERLIN, GERMANY.

TMEANS FOB CLOSING AND Q PENING Application filed September T 0 all to 710m it may 0012 06am Be it known that I, F RANZ Unmo, a citizen of the CzechoS-lovakian Republic, residing at Berlin, Germany, have invented certain new and useful Improvements Relating to lvleans for Closing and Opening Skips; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to means for closing skips made in two parts and opening at their lower ends. According to the invention the forces tending to close the skip always act in a horizontal direction and equally on the two halves of the skip. The arrangement ensures the most efiicient action of the forces.

The accompanying drawings show an example of a construction according to the invention. Figs. l3 show diagrammatically various ways in which the forces may be applied.

Fig. 4: is an elevation showing a skip closed; Fig. 5 shows the same skip open.

Figs. 6 and 7 show respectively in elevation and section means for releasing and locking the closing device.

As shown in Figs. l3, the means for closing the skip comprises a rope mor the like which is either stretched from one half of the skip to the other (Fig. 1) or is in the form of a closed rope circuit a (Fig. 2), or the rope (Fig. 3) is wound round rollers in the manner of a pulley block. During the closing of the skip in all three cases the rope is tensioned by a roller 0, which craws the halves of the skip towards each other. It is obvious from Figs. 25 that all the forces acting on the horizontal parts of the rope tend to close the skip in contrast to the known arrangement of forked lever-or chain drives in which only the horizontal components are effective in closing the skip apart from the fact that, as the closure is nearly completed these components are correspondingly reduced. In the construction according to the invention, not only is there a constant horizontal closing force but the horizontal components of the inclined portions of the rope also act in the same manner. Also, as shown diagrammatically in Fig. 3, and in. the example illustrated in Figs. i andi5,the rope t passes over rollers 1" or s in the two parts p and g of the skips in the manner of a pulley block. The force acting on the roller 0 need, therefore, only balance a part of the resist- Patented May 9, 1922.

14, 1920. Serial No. 410,315.

ance to closing. The ends of the rope are preferably secured by means of tensioning screws to the halves of the skip.

The rope a secured to the roller 0 can be wound in any convenient manner by hand on a suitable drum or disc.

A simple and efficient arrangement for this purpose is shown in Figs. 6 and 7. On a square sectioned shaft (4, which can be retated and carries the windling disc or drum (not shown), a ratchet wheel I) is keyed. On this Wheel (or loose on the shaft) a casing d is rotatably mounted and is coupled with the spur wheel by means of a pawl 6 so as to turn in one direction. The pawl is pressed against the spur wheel by a spring 7* held in the easing 03 by a screw g. A cover 0 holds the wheel and casing in their relative positions. On a raised portion A of the casing d is a slot 2'- on which a stop 0) engages (Figs. at and 5). In Figs. 4: and 6 the combined locking and releasing device is shown with the skip closed, the stop 1) resting in the slot 71. If at any predetermined point of the path of the skip the stop 2) is removed from the slots (by a pull rope or other device) as shown in Fig. 5, the shaft (6 with the spur wheel 2) and the casing d is rotated in the direction of the arrow Z (Fig. 6) under the action of the weight of the two parts of the skip, so that the casing comes into the position shown in Fig. 5. If the skip is to be closed the loosely mounted casing is first rotated further until'it reaches the position shown in Fig. 6 in which it is secured by the stop 1). The shaft is then turned in t 1e opposite direction shown by the arrow is, and thereby winds the rope uon the drum and tensions the rope n. The pawl e of the casing (Z prevents the shaft (1, from rotating in the reverse direction and theskip is secured in its closed position.

I claim:

1. A skip of the clam-shell type having two halves pivoted together at their upper ends, a pulley mounted on the lower end of each half, a cable connecting these pulleys, the lower strand being horizontal, another pulley engaging the upper strand at a point midway between the two pulleys, and means for raising said intermediate pulley to close the halves and for lowering it to permit the halves to open.

2. A skip of the clam-shell type having two halves pivoted together at their upper ends, a pulley mounted on the lower end of each half, a cable connecting these pulleys,

the lower strand being horizontal, another pulley engaging the upper strand at point midway between the two pulleys, and means for raising said intermediate pulley to close the halves and {or loweringit to permit the halves to open, said cable having its ends anchored to the respective halves and being wound around the pulley on the halves in the manner of a pulley-block.

3. In a skip of? the clam-shell type, a pulley mounted on each half near its lower end, a cable connecting the two pulleys, an inter mediate pulley for tensioning the upper strand of the cable to close the halves, a cable connected to this intermediate Julley, and means for winding up and unwinding the cable mounted on one of the halves embodying a shaft, a ratchet-wheel affixed thereto, a rotatable member carrying a pawl normally engaging the ratchet-wheel, and a manually operated locking device for holding said member a, ;ainst rotation on said shaft, for the purpose set forth.

4. In a skip of the clam-shell type, apulley mounted on each half near its lower end, cable connetcing the two pulleys, an intermediate pulley ior tensioning the upper strand of the cable to close the halves, a cable connected to this intermediate pulley,

and means for winding up and unwinding the cable'mounted on one of the halves embodying a shaft, a ratchet-wheel aflixed thereto, a rotatable member carrying a pawl normally engaging the ratchet-wheel, and a manually-operated locking device for holding said member against rotation on said shaft, said rotatable member being rotatably mounted on the ratchet-wheel.

5. In a skip of the clam-shell type, a pulley mounted on each half near its lower end, a cable connecting the two pulleys, an intermediate pulley ior tensioning the upper strand of the cable to close the halves, a cable connected to this intermediate pulley, and means for winding up and unwinding the cable mountedon one of thehalves embodying a shaft, a ratchet-wheel affixed thereto, a rotatablemember earryinga pawl normally engaging the ratchetwvheel andprovide'd at its upper end with a notch, and a manuallyoperable stop adapted to engage into said notchto lock the member against rotation.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aftixmy signature in the presence of wowitnesses.

FRANZ UHLIG,

Vfitnesses JAKoB KRAUs,

H. Lore. 

